A First

I have experienced a first time event.  Since Eric was born, I have relied very heavily on caffeinated  soda with hfcs, artificial sugar and real sugar every time Eric gets sick.  You might think this is a lot of sugar and soda, it was. As you might recall from a blog earlier this month, I have give up soda and sugar.  This was a very big test for me. I passed it with almost flying colors.  I did not not have any soda and my extra sugar food was limited to a very small amount of dark chocolate.

The good news is I that Eric is feeling better.  I got tired but not like in the past.  Believe it or not, I seemed to have more energy.  I even managed to clean house while Eric was sick.  I did eat more fruit  and cheese or peanut butter.  Let’s face it, a long day with a sick boy is a long day any way you slice it.  So having a healthy snack as replacement for soda was a good move.

I tried to order a new bath seat cover for Eric’s bath chair today. I tried to pay cash to get it faster. Would you believe that they would not take a cash payment and instead I will have to go through the insurance company and bother the doctor for a script. It seems that my life is getting wonkier every day.  Well I am off to tag and bag hats.  Pictures to follow.

The Ugly Side of Life

Anti-Semitism has reared it’s ugly head in my life. It feels like the 1960’s to me again.  After two days of crying I have decided what needs to be done to make it better for my fellow human beings and myself.   Because I need to be sensitive to my environment where this is happening I have come up with a gentle solution to the problem.   I will no longer stop what I am doing to provide technical support for electronic equipment or provide any assistance of any kind to those who act in a hateful or mean manner to anyone.  If they choose to act in a hateful way the niceties in life will no longer be provided by me.  

I really try to live by the golden rule, Do unto others as they do in to you.  I always took this to mean leave the world a better place than I found it.  Such as clothing and feeding those who can’t. Thus my obsession with knitting hats for kids.   Taking care of the environment.  Taking care of the sick.  It has taken me 59 years to figure out that there is a dark side to the golden rule too.  I however choose not to be mean to the nasty people, but rather just let them flounder in loneliness.

With that said I am off to warped a loom.

Progress Maybe

My body is still having a hard time with this adjustment of 80% less sugar and no soda’s.  I am finding it hard to believe that I am sleeping better most nights, with the exception of the nights that Eric wakes e up.  The nausea is slowly abating.  I have a bit more energy. I also need to eat more since fruits and vegetables have less calories.

I have to admit that I am a little disappointed that the scale is only down 2.5 pounds.  I know I did not put it all on in one week, but damm it I want it gone in one week.  John says that I just need a little more patience.  This is not my strong suit.  But this is not a diet, it is a lifestyle change.

After observing another spinner I finally have the short draw down in spinning.  Although I have modified it do to the arthritis in my left hand.  My technique might not be by the book, but I can finally do a short draw after years of spinning.  I am doing the happy dance.  Now to learn to do bouchée before I need to teach it in a few months.

And finally, I have found another area to Zen.  I was looking for something for John and I stumbled upon some more clutter.  More craft supplies to share, Goodwill, trash or recycling only time will tell.

The Next Step

The next step to a healthier me is cutting my sugar compsution by 80%.  I know that there are natural sugars in fruits and vegetables.  So this is why I say cut my sugar compsution by 80%.. This also means no soda for an afternoon pick me up.  No second cuppa of chai in the mornings.

Cutting sugar and caffeine way back at the same time.   I must be crazy.  Right now my body is starting a revolution. It is not happy with this change yet.  This should take six to eight weeks, hopefully.  I am hoping that with this change like the others I have made in the past will have a positive impact on my body.  I will let you know.

Tagging and Bagging

I am trying to get caught up on tagging and bagging my charity knitting and weaving.  This involves making a fiber content tag, which includes fiber, washing instructions and a positive note for each item.  I also count the rows for the one million row challenge on Raverly at this time.  So today I tagged and bagged 3 scarfs that we’re hand woven and 3 hat for 243 rows.  

I still have this bag to tag and bag plus whatever is on my knitting needles when the items are finished.

My Hands

Here I sit in the middle of the night with my hands aching and too swollen for the night splints.  Waiting for the aspirin to kick in.  Trying to think of anything I can do around the house without waking the guys.  Knitting and spinning are out my hands are too sore and it would only make them worse.  Weaving is out I do not have either loom warped. I guess that I could do some light cleaning and start the dishwasher and washing machine. Maybe by then the swelling and pain will go away enough to sleep.  I can only hope.

Why does pain always seem worse in the middle of the night?

If You Give Eric A Purse

Eric came home early from his day program for an appointment. In the mists of being given a pile of paperwork, I gave Eric my purse to hold.  Before we went in to see his doctor, I  also gave Eric a choice to go to knitting with my friends or go home and watch television. I gave him time to think about it. In retrospect that was a mistake.

After his doctor's appointment, I asked for my purse back. Eric made his grip tighter. We went back and forth for 10 minutes before Eric finally won. When we got to the car and Eric was sure that we were heading home, he let go of my purse.  His daddy will be proud of him for holding his ground.

No knitting friends for me today. Eric is wondering where I am at the moment.. So it's time to go.